The Path to Darkness

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 “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the road is easy that leads to destruction, and there are many who take it. For the gate is narrow and the road is hard that leads to life, and there are few who find it." Matthew 7:13-14 Even though it goes without saying that the wrong thing is the most convenient and the best thing often most difficult, it is important to see the fullness of the path to destruction before we abandon ourselves to it. After all, the enemy never ceases to present us with the most succulent of immediate temptations, telling us all we need to do is give in and life will be much easier. Below are the stages laid out by John of the Cross accompanied by some more content to make it a reflection on the hell that we are free to choose.
  1. Desire for what one does not currently possess. Often, we don't really even need the end we seek, and/or God will provide it later as a gift, we did not choose the patience to wait for.
    1. "Are you not worth more than the sparrows" who God provides for so lavishly?
    2. What does God owe us? Has He not given all that we have?
    3. To be tempted is not to sin.
  2. The enemy whispers, "is this not all that is needed? Is it not within your grasp?", "it is just one time, is it really that bad?", and "Doesn't God want you to be well? Why would he keep this from you? don't you think you need it? what is so bad about it anyway?"
    1. "God alone shall provide a Ram"
    2. All actual good comes from God who alone is good.
    3. "God's grace is sufficient for you"
  3. Clouding of Spiritual Judgement, numbing the spiritual senses and conscience leads to the committal of the sins of compromise not fully to what we desire, but still sin.
    1. Depend on Him who loves you, all that matters is that you are with Him. No pain can separate you from God.
    2. "I am the Gate" John 10:9
  4. Increasing leniency in considering the fleeting nature of worldly goods. We, spreading our will on the temporal plain, losing ambition for the heavenly/eternal. Extreme lukewarmness with God, and an increasing desire for vain things. Conscience is no longer credible with regard to the specific most appealing sins.
    1. What is worth much that does not cost much?
    2. "For which of you, intending to build a tower, does not first sit down and estimate the cost, to see whether he has enough to complete it?" Luke 14:28
  5. Complete abandoning of God whence greed and covetousness are the sole informants of one's decisions. Laws become oppressive and against the new definition of happiness, rather than protective and necessary.
    1. "I am no longer worthy to be called your son; treat me like one of your hired hands.”’ So he set off and went to his father. But while he was still far off, his father saw him and was filled with compassion; he ran and put his arms around him and kissed him. Then the son said to him, ‘Father, I have sinned against heaven and before you; I am no longer worthy to be called your son.’ But the father said to his slaves, ‘Quickly, bring out a robe—the best one—and put it on him; put a ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. And get the fatted calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate; for this son of mine was dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found!’ And they began to celebrate." Luke 15:19-24
    2. The enemy will identify us by our guilt narrowing our perspective to the evil we committed. It is not the end of the world only sin which God died to save you from and happily receives you back.
  6. The forgetting of God, the sinner takes pleasure, wealth, power, and/or honor to be the god they serve. Although the sinner claims to still have boundaries such as the avoidance of murder, they deceive themselves of what they will or will not do. Their selfishness is the only thing that prevents them from being worse sinners, prioritizing their few favorite sins of others they still have a conscience against. However, they, due to denial, repression, and guilt, are chained entirely to the negative feedback loop of such sins; not feeling momentarily happy, commit the sins that give them the illusion of momentary happiness, feeling guilt and a post-high emptiness, and then the process starts over. They live in a mitigated and finite hell in the present. 
    1. The enemy will identify us by our guilt narrowing our perspective to the evil we committed. 
    2. As in all stages a confession with true contrition is efficacious, however at this stage it is rare
    3. There is a version of this stage from which there is no recovery.
In conclusion, truly the path is very easy unto destruction both presently and eternally. It seems very often we only concern ourselves with attaining virtue and holiness, and we just suppress thinking about sin. However, when temptations blow our way, we are curious and captivated about stepping only a step in the direction of sin. Breaking our grip on God, we abandon ourselves to this path as we fail to choose God and thereby choose sin, darkness, and death. abandon ourselves to this path as we fail to choose. It is important to look not only at the bait but what attaches itself to the hook, and where the line would pull us into. Taking the bait, our enemy will hold power over us, such that as long as we are deceived, we are allowed to enjoy the bait, and the moment we become aware of what is really happening, we are pulled with great force down this path by the hook we have subjected ourselves to.

Written by Carter Carruthers & also available soon at Missio Dei

I am a created entity, not a person.

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